The University of Chicago Diabetes Research and Training Center is a comprehensive center that aims through multidisciplinary and cooperative approaches (a) to facilitate basic and clinical biomedical research in the causes, complications and treatment of diabetes and in related areas of biochemical and cellular metabolic regulation, and (b) to foster the highest level of diabetes research possible by encouraging younger investigators and others to apply their expertise to the study of diabetes and its related endocrine diseases, and (c) to develop and promulgate the use of new modalities for the management of diabetes in the clinical setting and new instruments for the training of health care professionals (including physicians, nurses, nutritionists and others) in optimal diagnostic and treatment practices, all to ensure that diabetic patients receive care by ever improving state-of-the-art methods. The DRTC maintains (a) three core laboratories (Radioimmunoassay and Clinical Studies, Cellular and Molecular Biology, and Peptide and Protein Analysis) to facilitate basic and clinical research by modern and exacting methods, (b) a Pilot and Feasibility study program to encourage younger investigators to become involved in diabetes research, (c) Model Patient Demonstration and Documentation units to provide a professional health care team setting for demonstrating optimal patient management to others and for facilitating the conduct of clinical research in many areas of diabetes investigation, (d) an Educational Development Unit to develop new education tools and methods for the training of health care professionals and to promulgate their wide use by practicing diabetes professionals in a variety of settings, and (e) an Administrative Core to oversee all programmatic and fiscal aspects of the center and to enrich all of its activities. Past, ongoing and proposed activities emphasize collaboration between basic and clinical investigators on questions of fundamental importance to understanding multiple and complex aspects of diabetes and collaboration between health care professionals and educators on broad matters pertaining to diabetes training and optimal patient management. Outreach activities related to seminar and program presentations and to cooperative endeavors with agencies such as the Center for Disease Control ensure both the high visibility of center programs and the dissemination of new information and methods which have been developed under the auspices of the Diabetes Centers Program.